MySwissAlps.com features ads, commercial and non-commercial Trip report part 6 – Lauterbrunnen
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If you hadn’t already read my previous trip reports, see the link below.for part 5 which also contains the links to parts 1-4.
http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/trip-report-part-5-kandersteg-oeschinensee
Day 7 – Saturday 9th September
In the morning, saw a parade of Swiss cows being herded through the town with their bells making lots of noise and drawing a crowd. See here for video of said cow parade – http://www.instagram.com/p/BY 1THxTD0il/?taken-by=bensumw
Checked out of the hotel in Kandersteg after breakfast, heading to Lauterbrunnen and weather forecast was bad. Rain the whole day. Checked in to the accommodation (BASE café), very good location being next to the tourist information center and the police station. Had a single room with a window view of Staubbach falls. The Jungfrau Marathon was going on and i had a look at the route. It was not just a full 42km marathon but also a hike due to elevation gain of almost 2000m. Wow ! Due to the rain, visited Trummelbach falls and Staubbach falls. Was lucky to witness some yodelling (i believe)
See video of Trummelbach falls – http://www.instagram.com/p/BY 1VRJEDBp3/?taken-by=bensumw
Yodelling : http://www.instagram.com/p/BY 1UXAkjmmC/?taken-by=bensumw
Took the cable car and train to Murren and walked to Gimmelwald even though the view was mainly clouds. As expected, there were very few people out and about in the rain. I had dinner (lasagne) at the Mountain Hostel and caught the cable car down to Stechelberg and bus to Lauterbrunnen. My main objective in Lauterbrunnen was the via ferrata Murren – Gimmelwald, but because of the rain, it was not possible.
Day 8 –Sunday 10th September
Weather was better today, cloudy with intervals of sun but no rain. So, decided to do the via ferrata Murren – Gimmelwald. Was warned to be careful as the trail might be slippery from the rain the day before. Graded 3 out of 5, and it’s a descending via ferrata. The scariest part was definitely the huge exposure as it is descending, you have to look down to see where to go next.
Video of scariest part – http://www.instagram.com/p/BY 8o-A8jqpA/?taken-by=bensumw
Loved the final part of the suspension Nepalese bridge which was the main reason that i wanted to do this via ferrata. It was not as shaky as i though it would be and was quite easy to walk across with very good grip if you are wearing hiking boots.
Video of crossing the suspension bridge : http://www.instagram.com/p/BY 3XqZfjSFT/?taken-by=bensumw
I did slip and fall and landed on my butt, but that was in the woods. By the time I was done with everything, it was time to head to Grindelwald. Was planning to perhaps drop by Wengen to have a look around, but didn’t have time. Not sure if I would have missed anything? Checked into Hotel Alpenblick, but in the dorm area, which was really squeezed / cramped. Did some planning on the next day.
Next up : First – Bachalpsee – Faulhorn – Schynige Platte
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Holy smoke! “The scariest part of the via ferrata” looks insane! No way. Great videos Ben. Thanks for sharing.
Very cool adventures Ben!
Hey Lucas,
What’s the convention for using via ferrata versus Klettersteig?
My guess would be that a Klettersteig is mostly climbing, where as Via Ferrata may refer to a more horizontal “walk”, but still attached to a cable at all times. But, it’s a guess!
It seems to be used interchangeably.
klettersteig translates as “climbing” and “path that goes up & that needs physical involvement”. …roughly 😉
and Via Feratta is Iron Path in Italian….you’ll find Via Feratta used more in Switzerland I think.
But I come across klettersteig on websites from time to time, like for Glacier 3000. It seems most websites will translate Klettersteig into Via Feratta in English. So I guess English speakers have adopted Via Feratta in the English world.
I believe they both mean and refer to the same thing.
As pointed out by Lucas, via ferrata is iron path/way. Originating from the Italian Dolomites region ( which is as beautiful as Switzerland and i was there last summer doing a weeklong mountain hut to hut trek and daily via ferrata) during WW1 where soldiers used them to get around the mountains quicker.
The word Klettersteig i think is mostly used by german speaking countries.
Great trip report, Ben! I’m in awe of your exploits on the vie ferrate!
Alpenrose
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